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01Snake
02-09-2007, 04:23 PM
I thought the numbers would be a lot higher but then again from what I understand only 2% of the population make over 100K a year.

By CareerBuilder.com

It's only natural that you're curious. Who doesn't want to sneak a peek at the paychecks of America's wealthiest workers?

In the spirit of disclosure, here's a look at the median salaries of America's 50 highest-paying jobs, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The list of America's top earners contains many expected results (chief executives and lawyers), as well as some that may come as a surprise (air traffic controllers, construction managers). And, of course, there's proof positive that it pays to have an MD: surgeons and physicians dominate the list.

1. Surgeons -- $177,690

2. Anesthesiologists -- $174,240

3. Obstetricians and Gynecologists -- $171,810

4. Orthodontists -- $163,410

5. Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons -- $160,660

6. Internists, General -- $156,550

7. Psychiatrists -- $146,150

8. Prosthodontists -- $146,080

9. Family and General Practitioners -- $140,370

10. Chief Executives -- $139,810

11. Pediatricians, General -- $139,230

12. Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers -- $135,040

13. Dentists, General -- $133,680

14. Podiatrists -- $111,250

15. Lawyers -- $110,520

16. Air Traffic Controllers -- $105,820

17. Engineering Managers -- $105,470

18. Computer and Information Systems Managers -- $102,360

19. Marketing Managers -- $101,990

20. Astronomers -- $101,360

21. Natural Sciences Managers -- $99,140

22. Sales Managers -- $98,510

23. Petroleum Engineers -- $97,350

24. Financial Managers -- $96,620

25. Law Teachers, Postsecondary -- $95,570

26. Optometrists -- $95,500

27. General and Operations Managers -- $95,470

28. Computer and Information Scientists, Research -- $94,030

29. Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates -- $91,500

30. Physicists -- $91,480

31. Actuaries -- $90,760

32. Nuclear Engineers -- $90,690

33. Industrial-Organizational Psychologists -- $89,980

34. Human Resources Managers -- $89,950

35. Pharmacists -- $88,650

36. Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents -- $87,990

37. Health Diagnosing and Treating Practitioners -- $87,630

38. Computer Hardware Engineers -- $87,170

39. Public Relations Managers -- $85,820

40. Aerospace Engineers -- $85,450

41. Political Scientists -- $84,820

42. Physical Scientists -- $84,380

43. Computer Software Engineers, Systems Software -- $84,310

44. Personal Financial Advisors -- $82,970

45. Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary -- $82,450

46. Chiropractors -- $82,060

47. Industrial Production Managers -- $81,960

48. Construction Managers -- $81,760

49. Purchasing Managers -- $81,440

50. Advertising and Promotions Managers -- $81,250

Mixability
02-09-2007, 04:28 PM
I thought surgeons/md's would make more than that. We start a fresh out of school MD at 200k

Shelly
02-09-2007, 04:29 PM
I thought surgeons/md's would make more than that. We start a fresh out of school MD at 200k

As a resident? I've never seen a residency program that paid that much

Mixability
02-09-2007, 04:30 PM
As a resident? I've never seen a residency program that paid that much

well i guess not fresh out of school, but as a new to a private practice.

tlongII
02-09-2007, 04:30 PM
20. Astrologers -- $101,360

:smokin

Shelly
02-09-2007, 04:34 PM
well i guess not fresh out of school, but as a new to a private practice.

Surgeons usually have 4 years of residency, then interships, and some also do fellowships. There's a good 6-8 years before they're making money.

Trust me...it takes a while to build up a private practice. You don't have patients overnight.

But if you got in with an established group, that may be a different story

Mixability
02-09-2007, 04:47 PM
Surgeons usually have 4 years of residency, then interships, and some also do fellowships. There's a good 6-8 years before they're making money.

Trust me...it takes a while to build up a private practice. You don't have patients overnight.

But if you got in with an established group, that may be a different story

Its established, so our new docs have a full clinic basically overnight, because they're basically feeding off of our other doctors that have been practicing for 30 years. We're actually waiting on 1 MD to come back from a fellowship so he can become a partner.

ShoogarBear
02-09-2007, 04:59 PM
As a resident? I've never seen a residency program that paid that muchGood point. If they include residents on this list (which they shouldn't, since a resident is not qualifed in any specialty), then that would skew the list down a bit.

ShoogarBear
02-09-2007, 05:01 PM
20. Astrologers -- $101,360

:smokinAstronomers and political scientists seemed extremely high to me. I figure most astronomers are in academics or government, and who pays political scientists that much?

Mixability
02-09-2007, 05:05 PM
Good point. If they include residents on this list (which they shouldn't, since a resident is not qualifed in any specialty), then that would skew the list down a bit.


That has to be the reason its so low. We have administrators here that much.

midgetonadonkey
02-09-2007, 05:07 PM
I'm very surprised Library Assistant didn't make that list.

Mixability
02-09-2007, 05:08 PM
I'm very surprised Library Assistant didn't make that list.

You do it for the love of books don't you, you're not a money grubbing Mexican, are you?

ShoogarBear
02-09-2007, 05:09 PM
That has to be the reason its so low. We have administrators here that much.The numbers for surgeons and anesthesiologists are definitely low, but on the other hand the salaries for pediatricians, general internists, and family practitioners are in line or a little high. So I have no idea how they got these figures.

Mixability
02-09-2007, 05:11 PM
The numbers for surgeons and anesthesiologists are definitely low, but on the other hand the salaries for pediatricians, general internists, and family practitioners are in line or a little high. So I have no idea how they got these figures.

Extremely, but than again I'm just basing it on the payroll for our docs, which I guess by this average, is extremely high. 7 figures high.

Shelly
02-09-2007, 05:17 PM
I think this list is just to give one a rough idea what you could make minimum.

MrChug
02-09-2007, 06:09 PM
The way they act, you'd think that sales clerks at the high-end retail stores would be in the top 5. Jeez. And looking at this list and ALL THE BLOODY SCHOOLING these people go through I'm SOO proud to be among that range in pay and only have a BA! :greedy

Kinda speaks against our system huh?

smeagol
02-09-2007, 06:51 PM
Where are the bankers?

Das Texan
02-09-2007, 08:03 PM
Where are those in oil and gas?

ShoogarBear
02-09-2007, 08:06 PM
Where are the bankers?
Where are those in oil and gas?
Probably covered by:

10. Chief Executives -- $139,810
23. Petroleum Engineers -- $97,350
24. Financial Managers -- $96,620
36. Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents -- $87,990

Spam
02-09-2007, 08:10 PM
Something tells me astronauts are underpaid.

E20
02-09-2007, 08:11 PM
Private practicing surgeons kinda suck, because you have to pay like 100 grand malpractice insurance fee every year.

Zombie
02-10-2007, 01:00 AM
Which State is this based from?

ShoogarBear
02-10-2007, 05:29 AM
peds don't make 140K per year...unless that counts ped specialistsEven if you count the ped specialists, there aren't enough of those to drive the median salary up.

These numbers are weird.

MannyIsGod
02-10-2007, 05:41 AM
These numbers are weird. How the hell astronomers are so high I'll never know. There isn't a private sector for astronomy the way there is for meteorology, geology, or physics so I'm not sure how they're so well paid. Academia?

johngateswhiteley
02-10-2007, 05:46 AM
i agree, these #s do seem to be off.

smeagol
02-10-2007, 07:40 AM
Probably covered by:

10. Chief Executives -- $139,810
23. Petroleum Engineers -- $97,350
24. Financial Managers -- $96,620
36. Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents -- $87,990
Bankers make way much more than that.

AlamoSpursFan
02-10-2007, 07:51 AM
I wonder where Snack Food Relocation Specialists fall in the overall list.

(Hint: I didn't miss #50 by all that much...)

:greedy

Xolotl
02-10-2007, 09:31 AM
I thought pharmacists wouldve been a little higher

1Parker1
02-10-2007, 09:55 AM
Weird, I know that Pharmacists generally make over $100k.

Also:
12. Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers -- $135,040

Go figure the airline industry is going bankrupt...:wtf :lol